Sunday, March 22, 2009

The Eagles Off-Season So Far

The new just came out that the Eagles signed former Seahawks FB Leonard Weaver to a 1-year "show me" contract. It appears the Eagles finally addressed a roster spot that has sorely lacking and woefully unproductive for the Eagles Offense...they've lacked a real blocking FB since Jon Ritchie, and the guys that have assumed the role, has mostly sucked...(That said, I thought Kyle Eckel did a good job in the second half of last year, and I was more than willing to give the guy a crack at the full-time gig after a full off-season of preparation).

So the Birds have added an OL (Andrews - brother of Shawn), a couple of safeties (take assume the roster spot vacated by Brian Dawkins and Sean Considine.... notice I didn't say replace...Dawk's departure leaves a void no FA can fill), and now a FB.

The thing is - nearly every Eagles player who has become a free agent this year has left the team. The lone exception was Joselio Hanson, but he signed a long-term deal before the FA period started. Everyone else who has tested the waters has flown the nest. And the Eagles has essential made NO attempt to keep any of them. It is quite understandable in the case of Sean Considine and LJ Smith...they've been ready to walk the Green Mile out the door for a couple of years now. And I think the Birds have decided an injection of youth is necessary at the OT position. They did not pursue long-time stalwart LT Tra Thomas at all. The possibility of resigning bookend RT Jon Runyan remains, though it seems quite remote given his ongoing recovery from microfracture knee surgery. If I was a betting man - Runyan will not be back. If the Eagles are willing to let Dawkins go, then you can tell they simply are not going to place much emphasis on locker-room leadership, etc.

And I think that is the thing that burns most of us fans. Letting Dawkins even GET to FREE AGENCY, when the team is literally awash in cap room. Would it really have hurt the bottom line that much to give the guy a decent offer prior to the FA period and preventing his departure from ever even having a chance of occurring? Would it really have been so bad to give the fans that one exception -- that ONE STINKING example of how there is more than just a straight bottom-line to this business that is the NFL, but which has grown to become part of the psyche of all Philly fans? I mean, for Chrissakes, even the Phillies went out this off-season and kept the team together....

Of course I will want the Birds to win, but I want them to win with DAWK, not without him. And the Broncos?? Fuck, the Broncos aren't going anywhere. B-Dawk is going to squander away the last few years of his playing career being part of some "building process" in Denver, instead of trying to get over the hump with the Eagles. That sucks...